Fault-tolerant and finite-error localization for point emitters within the diffraction limit

We implement an estimator for determining the separation between two incoherent point sources. This estimator relies on image inversion interferometry and when used with the appropriate data analytics, it yields an estimate of the separation with finite-error, even when the sources come arbitrarily close together. The experimental results show that the technique has a good tolerance to noise and misalignment, making it an interesting consideration for high resolution instruments

Whispering Gallery States of Antihydrogen

We study theoretically interference of the long-living quasistationary quantum states of antihydrogen atoms, localized near a concave material surface. Such states are an antimatter analog of the whispering gallery states of neutrons and matter atoms, and similar to the whispering gallery modes of sound and electro-magnetic waves. Quantum states of antihydrogen are formed by the combined effect of quantum reflection from van der Waals/Casimir-Polder (vdW/CP) potential of the surface and the centrifugal potential. We point out a method for precision studies of quantum reflection of antiatoms from vdW/CP potential; this method uses interference of the whispering gallery states of antihydrogen.Comment: 13 pages 7 figure

Packing defects and the width of biopolymer bundles

The formation of bundles composed of actin filaments and cross-linking proteins is an essential process in the maintenance of the cells' cytoskeleton. It has also been recreated by in-vitro experiments, where actin networks are routinely produced to mimic and study the cellular structures. It has long been observed that these bundles seem to have a well defined width distribution, which has not been adequately described theoretically. We propose here that packing defects of the filaments, quenched and random, contribute an effective repulsion that counters the cross-linking adhesion energy and leads to a well defined bundle width. This is a two-dimensional strain-field version of the classic Rayleigh instability of charged droplets

"Ultimate state" of two-dimensional Rayleigh-Benard convection between free-slip fixed temperature boundaries

Rigorous upper limits on the vertical heat transport in two dimensional Rayleigh-Benard convection between stress-free isothermal boundaries are derived from the Boussinesq approximation of the Navier-Stokes equations. The Nusselt number Nu is bounded in terms of the Rayleigh number Ra according to $Nu \leq 0.2295 Ra^{5/12}$ uniformly in the Prandtl number Pr. This Nusselt number scaling challenges some theoretical arguments regarding the asymptotic high Rayleigh number heat transport by turbulent convection.Comment: 4 page

High speed imaging of traveling waves in a granular material during silo discharge

We report experimental observations of sound waves in a granular material during resonant silo discharge called silo music. The grain motion was tracked by high speed imaging while the resonance of the silo was detected by accelerometers and acoustic methods. The grains do not oscillate in phase at neighboring vertical locations, but information propagates upward in this system in the form of sound waves. We show that the wave velocity is not constant throughout the silo, but considerably increases towards the lower end of the system, suggesting increased pressure in this region, where the flow changes from cylindrical to converging flow. In the upper part of the silo the wave velocity matches the sound velocity measured in the same material when standing (in the absence of flow). Grain oscillations show a stick-slip character only in the upper part of the silo.Comment: 5 pages, 5 figures, accepted to Phys. Rev.

Instability of Compressible Drops and Jets

We revisit the classic problem of the stability of drops and jets held by surface tension, while regarding the compressibility of bulk fluids and spatial dimensions as free parameters. By mode analysis, it is shown that there exists a critical compressibility above which the drops (and disks) become unstable for a spherical perturbation. For a given value of compressibility (and those of the surface tension and density at the equilibrium), this instability criterion provides a minimal radius below which the drop cannot be a stable equilibrium. According to the existence of the above unstable mode of drop, which corresponds to a homogeneous perturbation of cylindrical jet, the dispersion relation of Rayleigh-Plateau instability for cylinders drastically changes. In particular, we identify another critical compressibility above which the homogeneous unstable mode is predominant. The analysis is done for non-relativistic and relativistic perfect fluids, of which self-gravity is ignored.Comment: 24 pages, 5 figures, 1 table; v2: typos corrected; v3: final version to appear in JF

Relativistic Models of Galaxies

A special form of the isotropic metric in cylindrical coordinates is used to construct what may be interpreted as the General Relativistic versions of some wellknown potential-density pairs used in Newtonian gravity to model three-dimensional distributions of matter in galaxies. The components of the energy-momentum tensor are calculated for the first two Miyamoto-Nagai potentials and a particular potential due to Satoh. The three potentials yield distributions of matter in which all tensions are pressures and all energy conditions are satisfied for certain ranges of the free parameters. A few non-planar geodesic orbits are computed for one of the potentials and compared with the Newtonian case. Rotation is also incorporated to the models and the effects of the source rotation on the rotation profile are calculated as first order corrections by using an approximate form of the Kerr metric in isotropic coordinates.Comment: 18 pages, 23 eps figures, uses mn2e.cls style file, to be published in MNRA

Oscillations of weakly viscous conducting liquid drops in a strong magnetic field

We analyse small-amplitude oscillations of a weakly viscous electrically conducting liquid drop in a strong uniform DC magnetic field. An asymptotic solution is obtained showing that the magnetic field does not affect the shape eigenmodes, which remain the spherical harmonics as in the non-magnetic case. Strong magnetic field, however, constrains the liquid flow associated with the oscillations and, thus, reduces the oscillation frequencies by increasing effective inertia of the liquid. In such a field, liquid oscillates in a two-dimensional (2D) way as solid columns aligned with the field. Two types of oscillations are possible: longitudinal and transversal to the field. Such oscillations are weakly damped by a strong magnetic field - the stronger the field, the weaker the damping, except for the axisymmetric transversal and inherently 2D modes. The former are overdamped because of being incompatible with the incompressibility constraint, whereas the latter are not affected at all because of being naturally invariant along the field. Since the magnetic damping for all other modes decreases inversely with the square of the field strength, viscous damping may become important in a sufficiently strong magnetic field. The viscous damping is found analytically by a simple energy dissipation approach which is shown for the longitudinal modes to be equivalent to a much more complicated eigenvalue perturbation technique. This study provides a theoretical basis for the development of new measurement methods of surface tension, viscosity and the electrical conductivity of liquid metals using the oscillating drop technique in a strong superimposed DC magnetic field.Comment: 17 pages, 3 figures, substantially revised (to appear in J. Fluid Mech.

The transition between Neumann and Dirichlet boundary conditions in isotropic elastic plates

The official published version can be obtained from the link below - Copyright @ 2010 by SAGE PublicationsThe transition from Neumann (traction-free) to Dirichlet (fixed-face) boundary conditions is investigated in respect of wave propagation in a linear isotropic elastic layer. Attention is focused on the implications of such a transition on the dispersion curve branches within the long-wave region. The formation of low-frequency band gap that is expected to exist in layers with Dirichlet boundary condition is shown to be caused by different mechanisms in anti-symmetric and symmetric cases. Certain implications to short-wave propagation in the layer are also investigated. The study includes both a numerical investigation and a multi-parameter asymptotic analysis.The work of the first author was supported by an INTAS grant, YSF/06-10000014-5790

Theory of Drop Formation

We consider the motion of an axisymmetric column of Navier-Stokes fluid with a free surface. Due to surface tension, the thickness of the fluid neck goes to zero in finite time. After the singularity, the fluid consists of two halves, which constitute a unique continuation of the Navier-Stokes equation through the singular point. We calculate the asymptotic solutions of the Navier-Stokes equation, both before and after the singularity. The solutions have scaling form, characterized by universal exponents as well as universal scaling functions, which we compute without adjustable parameters